Cloud9’s ‘Colossus’ CS:GO may have pumped the brakes, but in C9 Blue VALORANT things are looking up. That’s because on April 19th Cloud9 announced the signing of both Ricky “floppy” Kmeru and Erick “Xeppaa” Back to its lineup.
Both pros signed over from former careers in CS:GO. The pair had been pars of the so-called C9 Colossus team which sought to dominant NA CS:GO. However, the roster was dismantled in March after disappointing results.
C9 as a whole backed out of CS:GO leaving much of it’s roster in limbo. Xeppaa and Floppy are the first of that former roster to land, each switching game to try and bolster the C9 Blue roster. C9 like many top esports organisations has struggled to find consistency in the torrid waters of competitive Valorant. The nascent scene has seen many traditionally strong teams fall by the wayside against relative unknowns and unsigned squads.
The organisation has also struggled with building it’s new roster. A mishmash of former CS:GO pros and C9’s other aborted projects, such as C9 Korea, the lineup has found little consistency. Some of their biggest players were dropped or retired before competition proper began. However, the team is on the clock with VCT Challengers 2 and a vital chance to head to Reykjavik in May.
Ultimately, this may be another experiment gone wrong for Cloud9 Blue Valorant. The team will want solid results from their new lineup, otherwise another Colossus dismantling is just around the corner.
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